Yearly Archives: 2015

After trying to create the “perfect woman,” plastic surgeon Alex Simopoulos is now focusing on aborting their tiny babies.

I was astounded when I learned a few days ago that Bakersfield’s new abortionist is an infamous Beverly Hills plastic surgeon. It just didn’t make sense to me. Why would a successful plastic surgeon (who is in the upper echelon of the medical profession) want to become an abortionist (the opposite extreme)?

With FPA abortion businesses now offering (seemingly) “legitimate” services like cosmetic surgery, I began to envision the day that we encounter pastor’s wives entering the abortion chamber, justifying themselves because they are not seeking abortions but seeking to enhance their beauty with plastic surgery. (It’s really not hard to imagine such a thing, having encountered countless pastors’ family members at abortion chambers over the years.)Continue reading →

Tim and Terri Palmquist go through the food line at the wedding rehearsal dinner in the church social hall on April 27, 1985.

From the beginning of our relationship, we have gravitated toward the simple pleasures of life (especially when we can save money by doing so). Having enjoyed many church potlucks during our premarital years, we decided that our wedding reception (on April 28, 1985) would also be a potluck. Some were shocked at our decision, shuddering “people just don’t do that,” but in the end it proved to be a delicious (and economical) decision. Of course we did have wedding cake for all to share, so we weren’t completely untraditional.

So to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary, we are inviting our friends to join us for a potluck at Jastro Park (located at the corner of Truxtun Avenue and Elm Street, just a couple of blocks east of Oak Street near downtown Bakersfield). It seems appropriate to celebrate our “green” anniversary at a park.Continue reading →

Our friend Tony Lee (a longtime local reporter) asked me a few weeks ago to come on his radio show to share our story.

Along with explaining how God led us into pro-life ministry, I had an opportunity to share some of the amazing blessings — and some heartbreaking situations — we have experienced over our decades of ministry. As I told Tony, radio played an essential role in the beginnings of our pro-life ministry efforts.

The interview is available at this link, or click the “play” button below.

“Christianity is not a religion, but a relationship.” Words like this have been spoken often in the churches I have attended throughout my life.

I don’t know where this slogan first came from, but it seems to me that it became more popular through Scott Wesley Brown’s song “I’m Not Religious, I Just Love the Lord.” That song was certainly heard often in our home when I was growing up, in addition to being on my parents’ radio station.

Respected pastors (such as Ed Young) continue to teach that “What separates Christianity from other religions is the fact that it’s actually not a religion. Jesus was the most anti-religion person that ever lived. Religion is a set of man-made do’s and don’ts in order to appease God.”

A recent Washington Post article examining the faith of Senator Ted Cruz (the first Republican presidential candidate for 2016) noted that Cruz was echoing “common evangelical lingo” when he emphasized “relationship” instead of “religion.” (It seems that this question of relationship-versus-religion may become a topic of discussion during the coming campaign.)

When God heard the cries of the oppressed Israelites in Egypt, He raised up Moses to deliver His message “let My people go” to Pharaoh, the Egyptian ruler (Exodus 3:7-10). Pharaoh’s stubborn refusal to submit to Moses’ demands brought a series of divine plagues upon Egypt, finally resulting in the destruction of Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea (moments after Moses and the Israelites had miraculously crossed over on dry land).

Many great Bible teachers have taught that God preemptively hardened Pharaoh’s heart, as if God’s sovereign ability to overrule the will of man (and the glory He would receive through the Exodus) is the only story here. But such an emphasis hides a key truth about the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart — a truth which should serve as a warning to any of us who have allowed our hearts to become hard toward the cries of the children who are oppressed today by abortion.Continue reading →